Community Brag Posts

I saw a stand like this in a catalog for over $250 and knew I could build it instead for way less! I used the hinges so it collapses and both my daughter and I LOVE this stand :-) It is sturdy enough that my 4 yr old daughter and her 7 old brother can both be on it at the same time, wiggling and giggling.

We built this 8 foot long standing work table in trade for a friend. It turned out great! We had some scrap 2'x2' pieces of white maple plywood that we used for the top and framed them out with 1x3's. Then we made a simple base of 4x4s and 2x4s. It is a super simple table but it's so pretty!

I've been eyeing Rustoleum's new wood stain called "Willow" so I decided to give it a try for this project. It is sooo pretty. It lightens the wood almost like a white wash but it has this pearlescent quality to it and I'm swooning for it! Then we put 2 coats of satin poly over the top and legs. I prefer to use wax but he is using the table as a work surface and needed something a little stronger.

The plan was cut down to 6ft.  This took a few weekends, in order for all the parts to come together (waiting for the hardware, waiting for someone to cut track, etc).  

Bought a double door hardware set on eBay for $120 (including spacers and bolts), without the track included.  If buying the hardware, consider the size of the hardware you are buying in the overall design! 

I wanted my kids to have more space in their shared room, but I did not want to pay a ton of money for a new bunk bed. My husband and I found a plan for this bunk on Ana-White and fell in love with the design. It turned out so great that we will still be using it in our next home whether it's needed or not. We did change a couple of things on the plan that we didn't care for. The first is that we added a side rail for safety. Secondly we also traded the 1x6 boards on the head and foot boards for 1x4s on the top but kept the 1x6s on the bottom.

Modified by making 18" deep, right side is 20" wide (inside dimension) to accommodate cable box. I also trimmed out the side panels with 1x2 not just the front.

I used a rail and stile router set to make the doors. To do it again, I would have selected maple, as it routes better than the poplar. I would also consider overlay doors, made from 1x3. The inset doors leave little room for error - the frame must be square!!! You also have more hinge options with overlay hinges.

I also used 3x3 for the legs, I think their weight adds to the piece. The original base looked too small and fragile for the rustic upper half.

Some work still remains, staining as well as placing the veneer step on the shelf edges to give it a nice edge to stain, but I needed the space back for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow!

This lap desk was easy to build, it took me less than 2 hrs.  The painting and finishing...um, a bit longer.  I really hate painting, and filling nail holes is not my favorite thing to do, either.  But overall I am glad I built this little desk, as it will keep all of my beads and jewelry-making stuff handy for when I am sitting in front of the tv at night.  The side storage compartments were omitted to keep it on the lighter side, and the front handle serves no purpose whatsoever, it is purely decorative.  I added my initials on the top, they are just fancy gold stickers I found at the craft store.

About a year ago, I stumbled across your site, I was a lurker for awhile, finally joined, and can finally post the projects I have done so far. This was my second build from your site. It works perfectly on the front porch.

This was my second Ana White project (first was a sandbox). I made a few changes to Ana's plan so that it would better fit my porch. First, I basically flip flopped the plans so that the end table was on part 1. I also altered the length to better fit the cushions I found. Ana's plans were 24" between the 2x2. Mine ended up being 26.5". I also used 2x8's for the base instead of the 2x4 for added height.

The price of outdoor cushions was a big surprise!! We looked into buying outdoor high density foam and making our own cushions, but that seamed to be just as expensive as buying cushions. We also really had a hard time finding large cushions that actually fit this plan. Most cushions are REALLY small for this couch. we found some Pottery Barn cushions online that were on clearance.

It was a fun project and we love the couch!

I built the Simple Bed into bunk beds. The plans for this project are pretty straight forward. The only change I made in the plans, was use 2" x 4" angle plates to mount the side rails to the head and foot boards. This made it easy to assemble and disassemble if the beds needed to be separated or moved. I also had to use two 2"x4"'s mated together to make the bed posts since 4"x4"'s are only available pressure treated. The ladder is constructed of 2"x4" with the steps spaced 10" on center. 

I followed plans from someone who modified the Essential Adirondack plan to make it seat two. It is a fun and quick build!!

We made this based on the Emerson Buffet plans, but modified to fit our current TV accessories. We also added legs, instead of the framed base. 

My first project using Ana White plans. Used pressure treated lumber and Kreg pocket hole jig. Cost: $126.

I saw the plans for this and had to have it! My husband had it assembled pretty easily (we've built several dining tables/benches, but this was our first piece that went out of that box, lol) and the whole project took maybe a day or two including staining. We left of the end pieces just because we were trying to get it done quickly for Thanksgiving; we intended to add them on later, but I kind of like it open. Everyone who has seen it loves it!